What is the title of your latest release?MADE YOU LOOK What’s the “elevator pitch” for your new book?MADE YOU LOOK is a thriller about a Catskills retreat that turns deadly for a group of influencers when a snowstorm cuts them off from their greatest resource—their followers—just as a killer strikes. It’s a fun, twisty read filled with secrets, scandals, and morally gray characters. How did you decide where your book was going to take place?In a very full-circle moment, my fictional retreat was inspired by a real-life location that I discovered in an influencer’s sponsored post! The location has gorgeous cabins with huge windows, but while anyone can see in, at night, you can’t see out. That experience of being viewed by an unknown audience reminded me a lot of how social media works, and I knew I wanted to include the cabins in this story. The fictional retreat is also very isolated, which is great for relaxation, but not so great when something goes wrong and there’s no one around to help. Would you hang out with your protagonist in real life?My characters are much too cool for me, and I’m also out of their age bracket, so hanging…

What is the title of your latest release?THE BOTANIST’S ASSISTANT What’s the “elevator pitch” for your new book?A murder in the science lab shatters a woman’s quiet and ordered life, forcing the socially awkward but tenacious research assistant to find the killer herself. How did you decide where your book was going to take place?I love the Central California coast with its grasslands, oak woodlands and rocky shores so, like a good packrat, I stole bits and pieces to create my imaginary landscape. My protagonist, Margaret Finch’s, hillside cottage came right out of a hike where I discovered the ruins of an old homesteader’s cabin in the woods. Would you hang out with your protagonist in real life?Margaret has studied plants for so long that she sees them as friends, so I guess I would have to get in line behind the roses and lavender to hang out with her, but I would. I just love scientists. What are three words that describe your protagonist?Tenacious, honest and loyal. What’s something you learned while writing this book?I learned that plants have developed amazing defense systems in order to survive. For instance, a certain tomato plant, when attacked by chomping caterpillars, will…

If you’re a TV cozy mystery binger like me, you’ve probably watched a series based on a book series, and thought, I wonder if the book is better? Should I have read it first? In this case, it’s the other way around. Death In Paradise is one of my favorite cozy British mystery series. I’ve been watching it since it first came out, in 2011. It’s a lot of fun to see the fish-out-of-water English detective trying to navigate the sunny island of Saint Marie. And there are books featuring the first season’s detective, Richard Poole. But…instead of the show being based on the books, it’s the other way around. In 2022, Robert Thorogood, the showrunner for the series, wrote a book based on the TV series, and it’s very good! There are four books in the series, and I hope he’ll write more. If you’re a fan of Death in Paradise, you’ll love these! DI Richard Poole has been seconded from London to the beautiful Caribbean Island of Saint Marie. More comfortable in woolen suits than short-sleeved shirts, he’s struggling to adapt to his new home. But this paradise is about to get deadly. When self-appointed guru Aslan Kennedy…

With equal parts humor, heart, and Southern sass, Grace Helena Walz’s GOOD HAIR DAYS is a love letter to sisterhood, resilience, and the power of community. Set in the small town of Whitetail, this charming novel invites readers inside June’s Beauty Shop, where laughter, tears, and gossip flow as freely as the sweet tea. In this week’s Jen’s Jewels, Grace shares the inspiration behind her unforgettable characters, the magic of small-town life, and how she strikes the perfect balance between heartache and hope. Jen: GOOD HAIR DAYS captures the humor, heart, and chaos of Southern family life so beautifully. What first inspired you to write this story, and did the idea of the family salon come first, or the women who run it?Grace: The idea of the family salon actually came first. I was sitting in the hair chair at a place run by two friends, and they spoke so much like sisters that I got to thinking how fun it would be to write about two sisters and a family run beauty shop. I knew fairly quickly that I wanted Georgia to embody many of the typical older sister traits. She’s responsible and serves the role of “fixer” in…

Disclaimer: Since I was the one who organized this series, I picked the primary trope of each book. So if it sounds like I picked a lot of my favorites, that’s why. TROPE: Grumpy sunshineI particularly love the grumpy sunshine trope because I love two moments in particular: the moment she makes him smile, and the moment she gets him to crack. That austere shell needs to be poked and prodded, needled with a smile, until finally he snaps. And grabs her. And takes her. And…well, you’ll need to read the book for all that.Curves for the Grumpy Duke by Eliana Piers TROPE: Reformed RakeThere’s something about that man who can charm all the women but then falls for one. The one.What’s different about her? Why does he fall so hard? I mean, he’s been with a LOT of women, and no one thinks he’s slowing down. Least of all, himself. I have written a TON of reformed rakes. To name a few:● The Rake and the Writer● The One With the Redeemed Duke● The Duke’s Goddess Honestly, if brother’s best friend or friends to lovers weren’t my go-to tropes, reformed rakes probably would be. Sometimes the rake can pinpoint…

What is the title of your latest release?THE SECOND STORY BOOKSHOP What’s the “elevator pitch” for your new book?A woman inherits her grandma’s charming small-town bookshop. But the gift comes with some unexpected problems—including the man who broke her heart years ago. How did you decide where your book was going to take place?I wanted to set the story in a quaint southern lake town. While researching, I discovered the town of Davidson, North Carolina on Lake Norman. When my husband and I visited, we fell in love with the touristy little town—and with Main Street Books, the friendly neighborhood bookstore. Would you hang out with your heroine in real life?Absolutely! We’d chat books and family over coffee and croissants at my local bakery, and I’d definitely tell her Gray Briggs deserves a second chance. What are three words that describe your hero?Steadfast, stoic, swoonworthy What’s something you learned while writing this book?I learned a lot about the ins and outs of running a bookstore. The manager of Main Street Books was kind enough to sit down with me and answer all my burning questions. I couldn’t have written The Second Story Bookshop without her help! Do you edit as…

What is the title of your latest release?LUCKY GIRL What’s the “elevator pitch” for your new book?A popstar plucks young, precocious dancer Lucy to star in her music video, alienating Lucy from her family and setting her on a journey through kaleidoscopic Hollywood to discover who she wants to become before her fifteen minutes of fame is up. How did you decide where your book was going to take place?I knew Hollywood would be the main setting of the book in the second half; it made sense for Lucy to start in Massachusetts, where I grew up. I chose Leominster, Massachusetts specifically for her hometown because it has a perfect mix of rural woods and middle-class Olive Gardens, contrasting to the steely richness of LA. Would you hang out with your heroine in real life?Absolutely! I would love to have a deep talk with Lucy and help reframe some of her experiences. If she was one of my high school students—and that’s kind of how I imagine her, because for much of the novel, she’s the same age as my students—I would guide her through a personal narrative or autofiction assignment to help her sort her feelings out and think…

All my novels have a soundtrack that evolves organically. The playlist comes together when I’m writing, while I imagine how scenes look, feel, and sound. My latest novel, Always and Forever, takes place in contemporary New York City, but the characters’ current lives have been impacted by the past. The book’s playlist is therefore eclectic, containing music from various eras and genres. Many songs were inspirational to me while writing, and some of them are mentioned in the story, including: “Wild Horses” by The SundaysThe protagonist of Always and Forever, Suzanne Starek, craves more than friendship from Jay Darnell. She and Jay grew up together, and they’ve helped each other through tough times. During a scene in which they’re having a conversation inside his car, “Wild Horses” plays on the radio, and the song’s lyrics are symbolic of Suzanne and Jay’s dedication to each other. “I’m Not in Love” by 10ccThis ethereal, romantic song from the 1970s appears in the story when Suzanne finds an old cassette tape belonging to her uncle, Grant Carlisle. She reads what one of Grant’s girlfriends wrote on the tape, and it provides insight into his young-adult existence. “Rock the Boat” by The Hues CorporationAnother…

What is the title of your latest release?NOT YOU AGAIN What’s the “elevator pitch” for your new book?A bi-sexual funeral director and an aspiring screenwriter have to team up in order to stop the Groundhog’s Day time loop they’ve been trapped in. It’s Palm Springs meets Six Feet Under. How did you decide where your book was going to take place?I did a lot of research around supernatural hotspots in California, and eventually landed on Julian, which is a small town and one of the few places that’s considered a Dark Sky Community in the United States. That means the air quality is preserved through lack of harsh lights at night—perfect place to tell a story involving a time loop happening during a total eclipse. Would you hang out with your heroine in real life?Absolutely. She loves movies, cheese, and chases her dreams — she’s a badass. What are three words that describe your hero?Selfless, empathetic, loyal What’s something you learned while writing this book?This book dives into processing grief, and the idea of needing your own time to work through it. So as I was writing this, I think it helped me better process some of the grief I’ve…

Excerpt from TURNS OF FATE by Anne Bishop: Lucas Frost completed his patrol of the part of Destiny Park visitors found interesting—or to be precise, didn’t find too strange and unnerving. There was more to the park if you knew how to find it—or were destined to find it—but no one had bought a ticket for any of the trains, no one had bought a ticket for the bus that traveled to the “neighborhoods” on the island. Since no one had come to the pavilion to report someone missing, that meant no one had been foolish enough to go through a moon gate without fully understanding what would happen, depending on the gate’s intention at that moment. Most of the moon gates within reach of determined visitors were transportation. They took a person from the park to the station where a ticket could be purchased for passage on a bus, train, or ship. Sometimes one of those gates took a person far beyond the park—and usually beyond any hope of returning unless you were one of the Arcana. Some of the gates had multiple possibilities—like transformation. A kind of alchemy, changing one thing to another. Changing a person into something…